http://www.todayonline.com/sports/japan-may-pip-spore-super-rugby-bid?singlepage=true
Japan have emerged favourites to clinch the 18th Super Rugby franchise, after top executives at South Africa, New Zealand and Australia Rugby (SANZAR), the body that runs the competition, reportedly had second thoughts about the rival bid from Singapore.
It is believed that SANZAR could announce its decision by the end of this month.
Singapore’s bid was to see the Asia Pacific Dragons, a team made up of players from Fiji, Samoa and Tonga, based in the Republic, with the 55,000-seater National Stadium as its home ground.
Retired New Zealand All Blacks great Tana Umaga had expressed an interest to coach the team if the bid to secure the franchise was successful.
Earlier this month, it was reported that Singapore was a frontrunner to secure the franchise, after it was thought that New Zealand and South Africa were supporting the bid beacuse of shorter travel distance and fears that it could be difficult for the franchise to break into the Japanese rugby scene, given that clubs there are owned by big corporations.
SANZAR officials were also in Singapore recently to inspect the facilities.
But the Daily Telegraph (Australia) said fears over the financial viability of the Singapore bid caused SANZAR to believe they may be forced to underwrite the franchise.
That, coupled with Japan’s stability, strong rugby traditions with a well-supported club structure, had swung the bid back in the East Asian giants’ favour.
Japan national coach Eddie Jones was also quoted by the Daily Telegraph as saying, “We are a proper rugby nation, albeit small by world standards. We have a proper domestic league and existing pathways, and 500 universities play rugby here. We are the fourth-biggest rugby playing population in the world, so all those things have got to help.”
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